Apple Watch 3 vs Apple Watch 4

Back in May, I declared the Apple Watch 3 the Best Smart Watch on the market, with the release of the Apple Watch 4 in September 2018, Apple has improved upon their winning formula. In today’s article, I will be discussing the Apple Watch 3 vs Apple Watch 4, how the best Smart Watch has gotten better and how they stack up side by side.

Apple was late to the Smart Watch game when it first announced the Apple Watch back in April 2015, since then it has been the absolute best Smart Watch money can buy. That statement was hard for me to swallow because I am a die-hard Android fanboy. If you are deep in the Apple ecosystem then you don’t really have a choice for a decent Smart Watch if it isn’t the Apple Watch, lucky the Apple Watch is hands down still the best Smart Watch on the market.

Price

Naturally, as with all new Apple watches, the Apple Watch 4 is expensive, starting at $399 USD (Apple Website) for the 40 mm model with an Aluminium case, Sports band and without Cellular. The 44 mm model in the same configuration will is $429 USD.

On Amazon right now you can now pick up a base 38 mm and 42 mm Apple Watch 3 for a steal.

Naturally, the Apple Watch 3 being older last-gen tech takes a price cut and becomes a very good bargain deal if money is an issue.

Winner – Apple Watch 3

Display

Source: Apple

The Apple Watch 4 has a much-improved display that is one of the biggest upgrades from the Apple Watch 3, they have dropped the 38 mm and 42 mm variants for 40 mm and 44 mm. They have reduced the bezels and pushed the screen more towards the edges on both models. The 40 mm Watch 4 has a 394 x 324 OLED display, this is much larger than the 42 mm 312×290 display on the 3 and fits into a smaller watch casing. The 44 mm has a huge 448 x 368 OLED display that looks absolutely stunning.

Not only are the displays bigger on the 4 but Apple is definitely taking advantage of it, there’s more usable space and Apps just look better on the 4.

Winner – Apple Watch 4

Design

The design of the Apple Watch 4 isn’t anything we haven’t seen before, it most definitely still looks like an Apple Watch. The massive upgrade you get on the screen translates to a bigger watch case. For those out there with small wrists, the Apple Watch 3 38 mm was probably more comfortable than the new small 40 mm and that would be one of the few drawbacks of the new Apple Watch.

The 4 is also slightly thinner than the 3, on the wrist you won’t notice it that much unless you have both on the wrist at the same time.

Aesthetically the Apple Watch 4 comes in a few more colorways than the 3, the watch comes in a Stainless Steel or Aluminium finish and Silver, Space Gray or Black & Gold. The rear of the Apple Watch 4 for the first time is made from black ceramic and sapphire crystal, Apple says this helps improve cell signal.

Winner – Apple Watch 4

Performance

The performance of the 4 is definitely where you see a massive improvement over the 3, this is thanks to the new S4

chipset. The S4 is up to 2x faster than the S3 found in the Apple Watch 3. Plain and simple the new chipset allows for a more responsive experience and better multitasking, Apps also noticeably load quicker and it now supports Bluetooth 5.0.

With improved performance and a bigger screen you would expect the battery on the 4 to take a hit, you would be wrong, Apple claims you still get up to 18 hours on a single charge much like the 3.

Randomly Apple has also made the onboard speaker 50% louder…

Winner – Apple Watch 4

Fitness

Source: Apple

One of the biggest reasons the average consumer buys an Apple Watch is it Health and Fitness tracking capabilities. Those all return from the Apple Watch 3, Two new features and two of the biggest differences between the 3 and 4 is the introduction on ECG (Electrocardiograms) and Fall Detection.

If you tap the digital crown the Apple Watch can read the hearts electrical signals and bring up a waveform in 30 seconds, this feature isn’t for everyone, but if you have any sort of heart issues its a great way to keep track of your condition and share it with your doctor. This is an industry first.

The Apple Watch 4s Fall Detection feature uses new “next generation” accelerometer and gyroscope plus secret Apple algorithms to figure out when a hard fall has occurred. Once a fall has occurred you will receive a prompt that you can dismiss or use to call emergency services if you don’t respond to that prompt in 60 seconds after a fall, the Apple Watch will call an ambulance and notify your emergency contacts on your phone.

Winner – Apple Watch 4

Apple Watch 3 vs Apple Watch 4 – Who is the Winner?

The Apple Watch 3 wins on Price, but that is to be expected with the release of the Apple Watch 4

The Apple Watch 4 wins on Display, Design, Performance, and Fitness

Get the Apple Watch 4. As a whole, the Apple Watch 4 is a much-needed improvement over the 3, you get a larger display, faster performance, improved fitness capabilities + all the features from the 3. If you are deep in the Apple ecosystem then the Apple Watch 4 is a great upgrade or introduction to the Smart Watch category.

If money is an issue, get the Apple Watch 3 is still a great purchase and with it able to get watch OS 5 update, it becomes a great compromise and more feature-packed Apple Watch.

Do you own an Apple Watch? Comment below and let me know what your favorite feature on the Apple Watch is

About The Author

Long story short I am a self-proclaimed Tech Head, I love almost anything with a smart feature and Google Assistant is my best friend. I run mobilemarv.com and I aim to be your one stop shop for anything Tech, Smart or Mobile

7 Comments

Great post!
I love the features of the 4 and it seems iPhone is becoming innovative in the watch industry more than in the phone nowadays. The fitness capabilities make me really want the 4 over the 3 despite the price.

I see why the Fitbits are so popular because it does just what the Apple offers in terms using for health purposes such keeping track of heart rate and for runners using for timing pace and distance.But for me i would get the Apple watch 4 if I was in the market looking for a smart watch . One thing about Apple ids that they really do make quality devices might expensive at first launch like anything else that comes out initially it s going to have a high price tag. Go Steve Jobs !

For me Apple Watch display looks much bigger than the Series 3. They declare a 15% increase in screen size, measuring diagonally. But if we measure display area, The size increase as 30%. Increase in size really makes a huge difference to me. I am ready to pay more to get more.

Hi! I do not own an apple watch – but I have been thinking about the benefits of them. Something that’s important to me in a watch is that it is waterproof. Are the apple watches waterproof? I swim regularly and always end up getting my watch wet when I’m doing dishes or giving my kids baths. Thanks for this information!

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These are my opinions and are not representative of the companies that create these products.
My reviews are based on my personal own experience and research.
I never recommend poor quality products, or create false reviews to make sales.
It is my intention to explain products so you can make an informed decisions on which ones suit your needs best.”

Affiliate Disclosure

“When you buy something from this website, I may receive an affiliate commission.
These are my opinions and are not representative of the companies that create these products.
My reviews are based on my personal own experience and research.
I never recommend poor quality products, or create false reviews to make sales.
It is my intention to explain products so you can make an informed decisions on which ones suit your needs best.”